---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Neoliberalism makes citizens into…"
description: "\"“Neoliberalism makes citizens into consumers. The freedom of the citizen yields to the passivity of the consumer. As consumers, today’s voters have no ..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/byung-chul-han-7616_consumers_neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consum_2600610.jpg"
---

#  Neoliberalism makes citizens into consumers. The freedom…

![“Neoliberalism makes citizens into consumers. The freedom of the citizen yields to the passivity of the consumer. As consumers, today’s voters have no real interest in politics –in actively shaping the community. They possess neither the will nor the ability to participate in communal, political…” quote by Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/byung-chul-han-7616_consumers_neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consum_2600610.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/byung-chul-han-7616_consumers_neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consum_2600610.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/byung-chul-han-7616_consumers_neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consum_2600610.jpg)

> ““Neoliberalism makes citizens into consumers. The freedom of the citizen yields to the passivity of the consumer. As consumers, today’s voters have no real interest in politics –in actively shaping the community. They possess neither the will nor the ability to participate in communal, political action. They react only passively to politics: grumbling and complaining, as consumers do about a commodity or service they do not like. Politicians and parties follow this logic of consumption too. They have to ‘deliver’. In the process, they become nothing more than suppliers; their task is to satisfy voters who are consumers or customers.””

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Consumer culture erodes civic engagement, turning citizens into passive buyers rather than active participants.

**In simple terms:** Consumers replace active citizens.

Key Takeaway

Encourage active political participation.

Themes

politics consumerism citizenship passivity

Mood

critical thoughtful

Type

philosophical inspirational

When to use this quote

- voter education
- community organizing
- media literacy
- public discourse

Key Concepts

social theory political economy alienation

Questions to Reflect On

- How can we revive civic responsibility?
- What incentives promote active citizenship?

A Different Perspective

Changing habits is difficult without systemic shifts.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Consumers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consumers/) [Freedom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/freedom/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/)

## Related quotes

> [A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is it is what consumers tell each other it is. - Scott Cook,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-cook/a-brand-is-no-longer-what-we-tell-the-consumer-it-is-it-is-what/)

[Scott Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-cook/)

> [Citizens and consumers are demanding that climate change and environmental issues be taken seriously.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isabelle-kocher/citizens-and-consumers-are-demanding-that-climate-change-and/)

[Isabelle Kocher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/isabelle-kocher/)

> [Americans used to be 'citizens.' Now we are 'consumers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vicki-robin/americans-used-to-be-citizens-now-we-are-consumers/)

[Vicki Robin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vicki-robin/)

> [“We have become a nation not of citizens but of consumers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-ritter/we-have-become-a-nation-not-of-citizens-but-of-consumers/)

[Scott Ritter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-ritter/)

> [Please, please, stop referring to yourselves as "consumers." OK? Consumers are different than citizens. Consumers do not have obligations, responsibilities and duties to their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/please-please-stop-referring-to-yourselves-as-consumers-ok-consumers/)

[James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/)

> [I abhor the word "consumer." Consumers, unlike citizens, have no implicit duties, obligations, or responsibilities to the common good. It's a degrading term. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/i-abhor-the-word-consumer-consumers-unlike-citizens-have-no-implicit/)

[James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/)

> [A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is - it is what consumers tell each other it is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-d-cook/a-brand-is-no-longer-what-we-tell-the-consumer-it-is-it-is-what-2/)

Scott D. Cook

> [The direction of all economic affairs is in the market society a task of the entrepreneurs. Theirs is the control of production. They are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/the-direction-of-all-economic-affairs-is-in-the-market-society-a-task/)

[Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/)

> [Giving people what they want reduces us to consumers instead of treating us like citizens, consumers who are on the prowl for the predictable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/astra-taylor/giving-people-what-they-want-reduces-us-to-consumers-instead-of/)

[Astra Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/astra-taylor/)

> [Most citizens are consumers, not investors. They don't recognize the benefits to consumers that come from investment.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-conard/most-citizens-are-consumers-not-investors-they-don-t-recognize-the/)

[Edward Conard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-conard/)

> [We're supposed to show people how the world is, to give them the tools they need to make good decisions as citizens or consumers.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-pollan/we-re-supposed-to-show-people-how-the-world-is-to-give-them-the-tools/)

[Michael Pollan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-pollan/)

> [All of us as citizens have to be consumers and judges.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-rice/all-of-us-as-citizens-have-to-be-consumers-and-judges/)

[Susan Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-rice/)

> [Please, please, stop referring to yourselves as 'consumers.' OK? Consumers are different than citizens. Consumers do not have obligations, responsibilities and duties to their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/please-please-stop-referring-to-yourselves-as-consumers-ok-consumers-2/)

[James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/)

> [Eventually the consumer will come to appreciate the editorial point of view of every different brand. User-generated content without editorial oversight will simply be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-eisner/eventually-the-consumer-will-come-to-appreciate-the-editorial-point/)

[Michael Eisner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-eisner/)

> [One of the worst things to come out of the Consumer Protection Board's misleading claims is the impression that government resources are to hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-lesko/one-of-the-worst-things-to-come-out-of-the-consumer-protection-board/)

[Matthew Lesko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-lesko/)

## More by Byung-Chul Han

> [“El ocaso de los Dioses, Nietzsche formula tres tareas por las que se requieren educadores: hay que aprender a mirar, a pensar y a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/el-ocaso-de-los-dioses-nietzsche-formula-tres-tareas-por-las-que-se/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“Depression—which often culminates in burnout—follows from overexcited, overdriven, excessive self-reference that has assumed destructive traits. The exhausted, depressive achievement-subject grinds itself down, so to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/depression-which-often-culminates-in-burnout-follows-from-overexcited/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“La crisis actual del arte, y también de la literatura, puede atribuirse a la crisis de la fantasía, a la desaparición del otro, es…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/la-crisis-actual-del-arte-y-tambi-n-de-la-literatura-puede-atribuirse/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“Today’s society is no longer Foucault’s disciplinary world of hospitals, madhouses, prisons, barracks, and factories. It has long been replaced by another regime, namely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/today-s-society-is-no-longer-foucault-s-disciplinary-world-of/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“Love of self is still determined by negativity insofar as it devalues and wards off the Other in favor of the Own.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/love-of-self-is-still-determined-by-negativity-insofar-as-it-devalues/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“The complaint of the depressive individual, “Nothing is possible,” can only occur in a society that thinks, “Nothing is impossible.” No-longer-being-able-to-be-able leads to destructive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/the-complaint-of-the-depressive-individual-nothing-is-possible-can/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“«primera enseñanza preliminar para la espiritualidad». Según Nietzsche, uno tiene que aprender a «no responder inmediatamente a un impulso, sino a controlar los instintos…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/primera-ense-anza-preliminar-para-la-espiritualidad-seg-n-nietzsche/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“The negativity of otherness or foreignness is de-interiorized and transformed into the positivity of communicable and consumable difference: ‘diversity’.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/the-negativity-of-otherness-or-foreignness-is-de-interiorized-and/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“So long as what is foreign does not attract unwelcome attention, immune defenses ignore it. It follows that the biological immune system is more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/so-long-as-what-is-foreign-does-not-attract-unwelcome-attention/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“Baudrillard, Las estrategias fatales, Barcelona,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/baudrillard-las-estrategias-fatales-barcelona/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“sujeto de rendimiento de la Modernidad tardía no está sometido a nadie. De hecho, ya no es un sujeto, pues ha dejado de serle…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/sujeto-de-rendimiento-de-la-modernidad-tard-a-no-est-sometido-a-nadie/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“Uno se defiende de la violencia ejerciéndola activamente. Uno mata para no ser asesinado. Matar protege frente a la muerte.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/uno-se-defiende-de-la-violencia-ejerci-ndola-activamente-uno-mata/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“definición (High Definition) de la información no deja nada indefinido.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/definici-n-high-definition-de-la-informaci-n-no-deja-nada-indefinido/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“Every age has its signature afflictions. Thus, a bacterial age existed; at the latest, it ended with the discovery of antibiotics. Despite widespread fear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/every-age-has-its-signature-afflictions-thus-a-bacterial-age-existed/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

> [“Neoliberalism represents a highly efficient, indeed an intelligent, system for exploiting freedom. Everything that belongs to practices and expressive forms of liberty –emotion, play…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/neoliberalism-represents-a-highly-efficient-indeed-an-intelligent/)

[Byung-Chul Han](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

[Explore all 16 Byung-Chul Han quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/)

## More Consumers quotes

> [One of the worst things to come out of the Consumer Protection Board's misleading claims is the impression that government resources are to hard…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matthew-lesko/one-of-the-worst-things-to-come-out-of-the-consumer-protection-board/)

[Matthew Lesko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matthew-lesko/)

> [Eventually the consumer will come to appreciate the editorial point of view of every different brand. User-generated content without editorial oversight will simply be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-eisner/eventually-the-consumer-will-come-to-appreciate-the-editorial-point/)

[Michael Eisner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-eisner/)

> [I've always considered making it legal for Americans to import their prescription drugs a free-trade issue. Imports create competition and keep domestic industry more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-grassley/i-ve-always-considered-making-it-legal-for-americans-to-import-their/)

[Chuck Grassley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-grassley/)

> [“In a world where consumers had limited choice, you needed to compete for locations,” says Ross, who went on to cofound eCommera, a British…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-stone/in-a-world-where-consumers-had-limited-choice-you-needed-to-compete/)

[Brad Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-stone/)

> [The capitalistic social order, therefore, is an economic democracy in the strictest sense of the word. In the last analysis, all decisions are dependent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ludwig-von-mises/the-capitalistic-social-order-therefore-is-an-economic-democracy-in/)

[Ludwig von Mises](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ludwig-von-mises/)

> [A brand is no longer what we tell the consumer it is it is what consumers tell each other it is. - Scott Cook,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-cook/a-brand-is-no-longer-what-we-tell-the-consumer-it-is-it-is-what/)

[Scott Cook](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-cook/)

> [Now that I'm more middle class, I have access to consumer goods. I do enjoy feminine frippery, feminine doo-da, stuff like that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shirley-geok-lin-lim/now-that-i-m-more-middle-class-i-have-access-to-consumer-goods-i-do/)

[Shirley Geok-lin Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shirley-geok-lin-lim/)

> [Why is Caterpillar bad if we create a new job in India or China to receive U.S. exports? It makes no sense to me.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-r-oberhelman/why-is-caterpillar-bad-if-we-create-a-new-job-in-india-or-china-to/)

[Douglas R. Oberhelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-r-oberhelman/)

> [America always put forth this phony melting pot theory, but it's a reality now. They couldn't accomplish the melting pot economically; they couldn't accomplish…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-means/america-always-put-forth-this-phony-melting-pot-theory-but-it-s-a/)

[Russell Means](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-means/)

> [Gaming provides us with some very good signals about consumers and what they're interested in.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peggy-johnson/gaming-provides-us-with-some-very-good-signals-about-consumers-and/)

[Peggy Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peggy-johnson/)

> [As consumers adopt crypto, we hope that they'll also be interested in trading equities and options.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baiju-bhatt/as-consumers-adopt-crypto-we-hope-that-they-ll-also-be-interested-in/)

[Baiju Bhatt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/baiju-bhatt/)

> [Metaphor isn't just a fancy turn of speech. It shapes our thoughts and feelings, reaches out to grasp new experience, and even binds our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-richardson/metaphor-isn-t-just-a-fancy-turn-of-speech-it-shapes-our-thoughts-and/)

[James Richardson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-richardson/)

> [Consumer wants can have bizarre, frivolous, or even immoral origins, and an admirable case can still be made for a society that seeks to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-kenneth-galbraith/consumer-wants-can-have-bizarre-frivolous-or-even-immoral-origins-and/)

[John Kenneth Galbraith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-kenneth-galbraith/)

> [Many of us are alarmed at the skyrocketing cost of medical care, including patients, who are the consumers. However, medical malpractice is not the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-baca/many-of-us-are-alarmed-at-the-skyrocketing-cost-of-medical-care/)

[Joe Baca](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-baca/)

> [TARIFF, n. A scale of taxes on imports, designed to protect the domestic producer against the greed of his consumer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ambrose-bierce/tariff-n-a-scale-of-taxes-on-imports-designed-to-protect-the-domestic/)

[Ambrose Bierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ambrose-bierce/)

[Browse all 1,606 Consumers quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/consumers/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“Neoliberalism makes citizens into consumers. The freedom of the citizen yields to the passivity of the consumer. As consumers, today’s voters have no real interest in politics –in actively shaping the community. They possess neither the will nor the ability to participate in communal, political action. They react only passively to politics: grumbling and complaining, as consumers do about a commodity or service they do not like. Politicians and parties follow this logic of consumption too. They have to ‘deliver’. In the process, they become nothing more than suppliers; their task is to satisfy voters who are consumers or customers.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Byung-Chul Han"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consumers-the-freedom-of-the/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Consumers"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consumers-the-freedom-of-the/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/byung-chul-han-7616_consumers_neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consum_2600610.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/byung-chul-han-7616_consumers_neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consum_2600610.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/c84/byung-chul-han-7616_consumers_neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consum_2600610.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Neoliberalism makes citizens into consumers. The freedom of the citizen yields to the passivity of the…” — Byung-Chul Han",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Byung-Chul Han",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/byung-chul-han/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“Neoliberalism makes citizens into consumers. The...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consumers-the-freedom-of-the/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/byung-chul-han/neoliberalism-makes-citizens-into-consumers-the-freedom-of-the/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```